Eyes on the Grave
by marymin
Summary: They are afraid of things they can't explain. (warning for canon deaths)
1. First Step

It must have been with diabolical intentions that Seto and Kano chose for Kido the chair that didn't face the kitchen.

"You sit here and relax," they'd instructed with matching grins. "It's your night off, we'll make dinner."

She'd protested she didn't mind, she liked cooking, they all did their part, but they'd vanished back into the kitchen. The noises that emerged from it now did more than enough to make her worry. Clattering sounds of metal-on metal floated through the air.

"Next ingredient is— put the pepper away, that's awful!"

"And that is cheating, you wouldn't have known I was holding it otherwise—"

The bickering was good-natured, but Kido felt herself tense up nonetheless. As far as she knew, neither of them had ever made more than toast before. Would it even be safe to eat whatever came out of that kitchen? She didn't feel very relaxed.

The light arguments seem to have subsided for the most part, and what she heard now was mostly short requests, like "Pass me that spoon," and "Get a lid for this." It eased her worries just a bit to hear that Seto had mostly taken control of their cooking endeavors. She still had no idea what they were making.

"Oops," she heard Kano drawl, breaking the relative silence. She didn't think to resume worrying until she heard something crash like it had been dropped, and then running water. A second later the door flew open, hitting the wall, and despite herself she turned in the chair, staring at them. Seto was propping the door open with his shoulder, one steadying arm around Kano's waist and the other hand gripping the back of his collar. He tossed the smaller boy down on the couch.

"Do we have a fire extinguisher?" he asked Kido, who shook her head numbly, "no? Well, that's okay." He flashed her thumbs up and a grin and disappeared through the door. Kido turned her attention to Kano, who was examining his arm. A shiny red burn ran from his wrist to his elbow, and he looked up to see her watching him. He smiled, and the burn disappeared from his skin. Kido knew him too well to be relieved.

"Clumsy me," he replied in a sing song voice, folding his arms behind his head and leaning back on the couch. Kido didn't miss the wince when he leaned on his burned arm, even though the injury was no longer visible. What was scaring her more were the sounds from the kitchen. Black smoke was billowing into the room, and she folded her hands over her mouth and noise, trying to stay calm.

The smell seeped in anyway, and she could practically see flames licking up the walls, eating away at the chipped white paint. She forced herself to take another deep breath, and the smoke chased its way into her lungs. Her eyes were burning at the corners.

A shadow covered her vision, and her eyes flicked up to see Kano, leaning over her and standing much too close.

"Hey, what's the deal?" he flicked her in the forehead, frowning. "I just set fire to the meal, we'll just go out to eat. I'm not sure it would've been edible anyway, haha."

Kido lowered her hands shakily, taking another breath. The air was clean, and there was no sign of the smoke she'd seen before. Seto poked his head out of the kitchen. "No worries, the fire's out. Can't save the food, though."

Squaring her shoulders, Kido pushed herself to her feet, forcing Kano to take a step back to accommodate her. She looked from one to the other, then sighed.

"I'll do the cooking from now on, I think," she said.


	2. Second Step

It was nice to get out of the city for once. They'd taken the train to the outskirts, carting picnic baskets and sunscreen along with them. Momo had been able to make it, to Mary's delight, but Shintaro had declined to accompany them.

They'd found a perfect place to set down their things; a wide field with a large tree in the middle, providing much-needed shade. Further away was a quick-moving river with a stone bridge that arced over it. Kido was organizing the picnic baskets by the three, and Kano had gone to pester her. Momo and Mary were enjoying the bridge, seated on the railing and swinging their feet over the bridge itself, backs to the river. They seemed to be having the time of their lives, giggling and talking animatedly.

Seto ended up poking around in the plants by the edge of the river. It was a brilliantly sunny day, and it was great to be away from all the traffic and concrete of the city. He squinted down at a little puddle in the mud, peering down at a frog that squatted in the shallow water. He'd heard touching frogs gave you warts, but he didn't think it was true.

Another shriek of laughter caught his attention, and he glanced up, shielding his eyes with one hand from the sun. The girls were laughing, Momo kicking her heels as Mary stifled her chuckles with both hands over her mouth, her shoulders shaking. Seto felt a grin grow on his face.

A second later, Mary lowered her hands and reached down for the railing to steady herself. She missed, and in what seemed like slow motion, topped backwards and off the bridge.

She hit the water with a splash, vanishing below the surface immediately. Momo screamed. Seto was already plunging in, up to his knees by the banks. It got deeper quickly, and he stopped once the water reached his waist, searching for any sign of where she was. The current was strong, and she could be further downstream by now.

She hadn't come up for air.

Terror roared through his mind and he realized he was frozen. He tried to figure out where she could be, and couldn't even picture where'd fallen in in the first place. The current pulled on his legs.

A hand pushed at his side, shoving him out of the way. With effort he tore his eyes from the water and saw Kido fighting her way in deeper. She took a deep breath and submerged. Seconds later she reappeared a few feet downstream, holding Mary to her chest. The smaller girl's eyes were shut, and from a distance it was impossible to know if she was breathing.

When Kido got close enough to stand she hoisted Mary in her arms and carried her onto the banks. Seto managed to make it out of the river, but couldn't bring himself to join them, shaken by the experience.

Momo came up behind him, her forehead furrowed. She paused, and not looking at him said in a quiet voice, "Don't feel bad. I couldn't do it either."


	3. Third Step

Kano was yanked from his murky dreams by a crash in the main room. His mind snapped to alertness, though he kept his posture perfectly relaxed and casual. He rolled over with a languid stretch, peering into the darkness. There was an still form on the opposite bed; apparently the noise hadn't woken Seto at all. Kano wondered if he'd dreamed it. But no, there were more scuffling noises down the hall, and coming closer.

He slipped out of bed and made his way to the door, at the very least putting himself between the noises and his sleeping friend. A sense of deja vu was tugging at his mind, and he had the feeling it was the thing to do. He pressed himself against the door frame, blending with the shadows and peeking out into the hall.

There was an unidentifiable figure in the main room. It looked like they'd trashed it, probably searching for money or something of value. Kano noticed a small glass jar, now in pieces on the ground. It was the jar Mary used to keep her earnings from selling flowers. A grin spread across his face. What a pathetic burglary this was.

The figure had stopped in the hall, apparently convinced a hanging picture was concealing a safe. Finding that guess to be incorrect, they let the frame crash to the floor. Kano was reminded of the severity of the situation, though he kept the grin on his face.

The shadow moved closer, and suddenly Kano realized he couldn't hide from it forever. He could use his ability to blend in with the wall from a distance, but he wasn't Kido, his powers didn't hide him from sight eternally. A thrill of genuine terror ran down his spine, the most honest thing he'd felt in ages. He pressed his palm to the wall, feeling a slight shiver in his hands.

The figure seemed systematic, methodic. Chances were it would check the boys' room first, since the girls' was further down the hall. This was good, he felt, but couldn't seem to articulate why. It felt like his mind was stuffed with cotton, as he struggled to process the situation still with the same smile on his face. The shadow moved closer, and then suddenly it stopped. Kano stared.

A hand clasped his shoulder, and he jerked around to see Kido, hand in hand with Mary, whose eyes were glowing a bright red. The intruder didn't move, frozen by her abilities.

"Help me carry him out," Kido said, her whisper too-loud in the quiet. She didn't ask why he hadn't moved. She didn't ask him anything.


End file.
